Temporarily or permanently handicapped persons, who must use crutches and/or walkers, have in the past and today been given the opportunity of attaching accessories to either their crutches or their walkers, enabling them to carry their personal items and shopping items. In respect to some of these accessories:
In 1947 in U.S. Pat. No. 2,423,635, Ferdinand H. Blum illustrated and described his crutch attachment providing an elongated horizontal pocket supported just below the crutch handle. A base holder is fastened about the spaced upper leg portions of the crutch, and thereafter the elongated horizontal pocket is removably secured to the base holder;
In 1956 in U.S. Pat. No. 2,750,951, Dorothy J. Barnwell illustrated and described her article carrying attachment for crutches. Her solid open top box has curved wire hooks secured to the box and then extended for hanging over the crutch handle, and about the spaced depending leg portions;
In 1970 in U.S. Pat. No. 3,545,462, Richard A. O. Mahoney illustrated and described his wire basket for attachment to a single pole forearm crutch;
In 1976 in U.S. Pat. No. 3,957,071, M. Beatrice Kenner illustrated and described her carrier attachment for invalid walkers. She removably attached to a walker a combination of a rigid tray and a depending pocket. The tray, when in use, is supported by the spaced handles and the top cross bar of the walker. When the tray is not in use, it hangs down from the top cross member of the walker;
In 1977 in U.S. Pat. No. 4,027,687, Mallissa A. McGowan illustrated and described her protective and/or decorative cover for walking aids. She provides an essentially full outer cover for a crutch, leaving the crutch handle and foot uncovered;
In 1979 in U.S. Pat. No. 4,146,045, Donald A. Grant illustrated and described his crutch carry-all attachment made of firm plastic with opened grooves to receive the side dual leg portions of a crutch;
In 1980 in U.S. Pat. No. 4,184,618, Marjorie F. Jones illustrated and described her article carrying attachment for walkers. She provides a firmly constructed compartmented horizontal caddy suspended by hooks from the top cross member of the walker;
In 1981 in U.S. Pat. No. 4,289,156, George Ulies illustrated and described his crutch attachment which is a firm compartmented container suspended from the cross bolt connecting the handle of the crutch to the spaced upper side leg portions of the crutch. By using an additional curved hook, he suspends his firm compartment to the top transverse cross member of a walker;
In 1981 in U.S. Pat. No. 4,295,483, Samuel W. Smith illustrated and described his crutch-mounted accessory pouch to fit within the spaced upper leg portions of a Y-type crutch. His pouch is supported by using a transverse member secured in unused holes, which were available for positioning a handle of the crutch in respect to the hand height of the person using the crutch;
In 1989 in U.S. Pat. No. 4,850,383, Kay K. McBride illustrated and described her crutch bag for hanging from the crutch handle and conforming to the crotch area of a crutch. The base is tied about the spaced upper leg portions, near where the single crutch leg portion commences. The bag top entry is closed and opened by using a thistle-type fastener;
In 1990 in U.S. Pat. No. 4,974,620, Marie A. F. Quillan illustrated and described her invalid walker and seat. She provides a strong band of material that is removably supported between the top longitudinal hand gripping rails of a walker, to thereafter serve as a seat, and also to provide support for pockets;
In 1990 in U.S. Pat. No. 4,974,760, Patricia H. Miller illustrated and described her article carrier for a walker made of flexible material and removably suspended from the transverse cross brace member of the walker; and
In 1991 in U.S. Pat. No. 5,012,963, Patricia Rosenbaum illustrated and described her walker supported tote bag having one large inner compartment and several outer multicolored pockets, all made of flexible materials. As an overall unit, this tote bag is supported by straps from the top front cross member and the side braces of the walker.
These inventors and other inventors have provided temporary and permanently handicapped persons with accessories for crutches and walkers, to thereby enable these persons to carry with them their personal belongings more conveniently. In spite of their fine accessories, more accessories are needed to provide greater convenience, comfort and safety with respect to the needs of these handicapped persons.